JOHANNESBURG - When Alan Jack, a
Zimbabwean farmer, was summoned to meetNigeria's president during a visit to
the capital, Abuja, he never envisagedthat two months from then he would be
packing his bags to emigrate.††† Yet this weekend, Mr. Jack is making final
arrangements for a pioneeringexpedition of more than 200 farmers from
Zimbabwe who will set off on a1,800-mile journey across Africa to settle in
a remote Nigerian state.††† At the personal invitation of President Olusegun
Obasanjo, they willbecome the first white commercial farmers in the
country's history.††† Mr. Jack, a maize and tobacco grower, has been given
2,500 acres of landin Kwara, along the upper reaches of the Niger river, and
granted "pioneerstatus," entitling him to a five-year exemption from tax or
import duties onfarming equipment.††† In return, he has promised to
bring modern farming methods to Africa'smost populous nation, which spends
$3 billion a year importing food -including rice, sugar, chickens and milk -
which it could grow for itself.††† Mr. Jack's farm at Guruve, in northern
Zimbabwe, was expropriated fouryears ago under President Robert Mugabe's
land-grab program. Mr. Jack hadbeen planning to leave Africa altogether when
he was invited to inspect thefertile land - seldom farmed before - along the
Niger and found himself faceto face with the Nigerian president.††† "Why
leave Africa and go to Australia?" Mr. Obasanjo asked. "We do notwant to
take away what is good for Zimbabwe from Zimbabwe, but I believethat it is
in the best interests of Africa that you do not leave."††† A number of
farmers have left Zimbabwe in the aftermath of Mr. Mugabe'spolicy of land
"redistribution," which has left farms idle and the countrydependent on
secret grain imports to sustain the myth that it can feeditself. Hundreds
have moved to neighboring Zambia and Mozambique, but Mr.Jack and his
colleagues are the first to take their skills halfway acrossthe continent to
Nigeria, whose economy revolves around revenue from its oilreserves.†††
Bukola Saraki, the newly elected governor of Kwara state, isspearheading a
national drive to wean Nigeria off oil-based revenues, whichhave totaled
more than $374 billion over the past 40 years, and make itself-sufficient in
food.††† "In Kwara, we don't have oil, but we have 2.3 million hectares
[5.7million acres] available for agriculture," Mr. Saraki said.†††† "If
I truly thought our peasant farmers could take us where we want tobe, I
would probably not have invited the Zimbabweans, but we decided theonly way
to push agriculture was through commercial farming."††† The governor
approached the Zimbabweans after trying to launch a "Backto the Farm"
campaign last year, only to discover that Kwara's peasantfarmers, most in
their 60s and 70s, were unfamiliar with modern technologyand had no capital
to buy tractors.††† "When we found oil [in the Niger delta], we didn't ask
people insouthern Nigeria to look for shovels to dig for oil," said Mr.
Saraki, whotrained as a banker. "We brought in foreigners with expertise.
Our land isan asset that isn't being utilized. The only way to do that is to
bring inpeople with the necessary skills."††† William Hughes, one of his
pioneer team, was regularly voted Zimbabwe'stop dairy farmer, producing
5,000 liters of milk a day. After receivingdeath threats, he was forced to
give up his farm and his life's work and nowplans with four other Zimbabwean
dairy farmers to build the first moderndairy in Nigeria.††† Locals
insist that the new immigrants will be welcome. Mohamed Alasan,headman at
Yelwa, said: "We want the whites to come and run the sugar estatebecause
they won't mismanage it."

††††† Critics says parliament set to become an
implosive,self-congratulatory institution

††††† The Pan African
Parliament (PAP) of the African Union will be hostedby South Africa, and its
delegates will be temporarily seated at GallagherEstate, neatly wedged
between pulsating Pretoria and jostling Johannesburg.

††††† Developers,
architects, estate agents, caterers, masseurs and bankersare lining up to
schmooze, wine and dine the African elite that will descendon the
not-so-civilised plains of the Midrand. It is expected thatrepresentatives
from 53 African countries, international observers,hangers-on and their
spouses will come armed with credit cards and dollarsseeking the best that
money can buy.

††††† A veritable feast of opportunities beckons and no
stone will be leftunturned in the new scramble for Africa that is likely to
characterise theinvasion.

††††† The local opposition's snot en trane
about how much this will costtaxpayers is germane only in relation to
accountable spending of the publicpurse. More pertinent is that the PAP
seems set to be a repository of "kept"men and women unlikely to seriously
challenge the hegemonic hold of SouthAfrica and Nigeria over the pace and
scope of continental development.

††††† Not unlike the emerging enclave
economies dotting the Africanlandscape and the proliferation of elite
accommodation bedevilling grassroots development, critics assert that the
parliament is set to become animplosive and self-congratulatory
institution††††† . What it will lack in substance it will make up in
fantastic outfits,cars, self-adulation and consumerism.

††††† But
that's the cynical view.

††††† On a more positive note, the institution
will be a consultative forumfor five years, eventually acquiring legislative
authority to pass laws forthe entire continent. It will gather for two
two-week sessions a year tooversee governance and security.

††††† The
PAP follows the secretariat of the New Partnership for Africa'sDevelopment
as the second African Union institution to be housed in SouthAfrica. To this
end, it places a responsibility on its host to see thatclean water,
sanitation, adequate housing, electrification, jobs and medicalcare top the
agenda when the PAP meets.

††††† While Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe has
overstayed his welcome at the topof the food chain, his continued grip on
power must not be allowed tofracture an already divided
continent.

Mugabe Said to Use Law as Political ToolDissidents
Face Zimbabwe's Justice SystemBy Craig TimbergWashington Post Foreign
ServiceSunday, July 18, 2004; Page A18

BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe --
Remember Moyo, a burly man with sad, withdrawn eyes,was arrested on Nov. 11,
2001, and beaten repeatedly and savagely over thenext several days. He was
charged with murder.

The day after the arrest, Moyo said,
police pummeled and stomped him by theside of a road. At a police station
outside this southern city, he wasstripped, his hands were tied behind his
back and his feet were shackled toa metal ring hooked to a wet cell floor,
he said. Several times, he said,thugs let themselves in at night and beat
him bloody and mute.

"This thing, you cannot forget," said Moyo, who had
been an intelligenceofficial and bodyguard for Zimbabwe's main opposition
party, the Movementfor Democratic Change. "You can try, but it just
sticks."

The beating Moyo suffered and the murder charges against him and
severalother men were part of an attempt to cover up two killings ordered
byofficials of President Robert Mugabe's ruling party, the Zimbabwe
AfricanNational Union-Patriotic Front, or ZANU-PF, according to human
rightsactivists, opposition members and church leaders. The case, they
contend,underscores how Mugabe has used the law as a weapon against his
politicalopponents.

Moyo, who spent more than two years in prison
without bail, was released inApril. On Monday, prosecutors acknowledged that
they no longer had a caseagainst Moyo and five others charged with
him.

In the first years after white rule ended in Zimbabwe in 1980 and
Mugabeassumed power, this landlocked southern African country of 12 million
waslargely regarded as a beacon of democracy and prosperity on a
troubledcontinent. But in recent years, Mugabe's government has curbed the
right topublic assembly, shut down newspapers, expanded police authority to
detainsuspects without charges, put the main opposition leader on trial
fortreason and taken control of thousands of private farms.

Amnesty
International and other human rights groups have chronicled thedecline of
the rule of law, saying Mugabe uses the criminal justice systemto punish his
rivals and protect his allies, and that to oppose him is toinvite false
arrest, torture and even death.

"These people are innocent," said the
city's outspoken Catholic archbishop,Pius A. Ncube. "That's what they do all
the time in ZANU-PF. . . . We'redealing with such a devilish government
here, all to defend one man: RobertMugabe."

The government has
consistently disputed such claims, blaming them on whatit has termed
treachery by its opponents, dishonest journalists and meddlingfrom the
British, the country's former colonial rulers. Mugabe and otherofficials
have characterized Moyo and his co-defendants as terrorists out toundermine
Zimbabwe's peaceful democratic system.

The roots of Moyo's case, as
detailed by human rights activists and in courtdocuments and news reports,
can be traced to the national election in 2000.It was the first contest in
many years in which Mugabe's party facedsignificant opposition -- from the
Movement for Democratic Change, which hadbeen formed the year
before.

The new opposition drew support from human rights lawyers,
farmers, civicactivists and some former members of ZANU-PF. One of them was
PatrickNabanyama, a ZANU-PF activist who believed that the ruling party had
growncorrupt. In the parliamentary race in June 2000, Nabanyama made a
publicbreak with the party and backed an opposition candidate, David
Coltart, awhite lawyer.

As the election neared, Nabanyama said he
began receiving death threats. Theculprits, he said, were so-called war
veterans, a loosely organized forceloyal to the government and consisting
mostly, but not entirely, of formerguerrillas in Zimbabwe's war against
white rule in Rhodesia, as the countrywas then known, in the
1970s.

"I have been subjected to several death threats since last month
by pseudowar vets," Nabanyama wrote in a letter dated June 19, 2000,
addressed to theDaily News, an independent newspaper since closed by the
government."Killing me will not stop the change. Instead, MDC is daily
gainingsupport."

That afternoon, before Nabanyama got a chance to
mail the letter, a gang ofmen seized him at his house and bundled him into a
waiting vehicle as hiswife and daughter looked on.

The abduction
initially drew little attention from authorities. But Coltartand other
opposition members organized vigils to keep pressure on thegovernment to
investigate.

Over the next few months, authorities arrested 10 war
veterans in connectionwith Nabanyama's disappearance, including Cain Nkala,
a Mugabe loyalist andthe local head of a war veterans
association.

After Nabanyama had been missing for a year, prosecutors
upgraded thecharges to murder. Nabanyama's body has never been
found.

As the trial date approached, reports reached opposition leaders
that Nkalaintended to implicate top officials from the ruling party in
Nabanyama'skilling. He never got the chance.

On Nov. 5, 2001, a gang
abducted Nkala in much the same style that Nabanyamahad been taken, bundling
him into a waiting vehicle as his wife watched.Nkala has not been seen
since.

Coltart, Archbishop Ncube and others said they believed that
Mugabe's partywas involved in Nkala's kidnapping, which they described as an
attempt toeliminate him before he could implicate party leaders in the
killing ofNabanyama.

But the police and the government put the blame
for Nkala's disappearance onthe Movement for Democratic Change. "The MDC and
their supporters shouldknow their days are numbered," Mugabe said at Nkala's
funeral, according tonews accounts. "The time is now up for the MDC
terrorists, as the world hasbeen awakened by the death of
Nkala."

Moyo, now 36, was arrested as police began a highly publicized
roundup ofmore than a dozen opposition activists in connection with Nkala's
killing.

Two other opposition activists who were arrested in connection
with Nkala'smurder, Sazini Mpofu and Khethani Augustine Sibanda, were shown
onstate-controlled television seemingly directing police to Nkala's body, at
asite a few steps off a road outside the city. The grave was so shallow
andobvious that Nkala's toes stuck through the dirt.

Prosecutors
charged Moyo, Mpofu, Sibanda and three other oppositionactivists with
Nkala's murder. Court proceedings began soon afterward, andremained
front-page news in Zimbabwe for the next 2 1/2 years.

But in court, where
some independent judges remain even after years ofMugabe's efforts to
consolidate power, the government's case began tounravel.

Mpofu and
Sibanda said police threatened and beat them, then dictatedconfessions that
the two were forced to write and sign. Sibanda said agentsfrom the Central
Intelligence Organization had abducted him and compelledhim, through torture
and threats, to participate in a plot to frame theothers for the
murder.

Cross-examination of police officers also revealed numerous
inconsistenciesin their accounts, according to a ruling in March by the
trial judge.

Perhaps the most damning was the inability of police to
explain why theirown investigation diary recorded that Sibanda supposedly
pointed out thelocation of Nkala's body to police hours before the diary
showed he wastaken into custody. The trial judge rejected police
explanations that theillogical diary entries were merely mix-ups.

The
diary also revealed that officials from ZANU-PF and Mugabe's officedirectly
intervened in the case to deliver intelligence two days afterNkala's
disappearance. That same afternoon, police raided oppositionheadquarters.
What the diary described as an undercover "ferret team"started developing
leads tying the activists, including Moyo, to
Nkala'sdisappearance.

Accounts of beatings and torture also emerged
during the testimony.

After hearing these and other stories, High Court
Justice Sandra Mungwiraruled that the confessions and the police testimony
were so tainted as to beinadmissible.

"In conclusion I would comment
that overall the evidence of the Statewitnesses who are police officers is
fraught with conflict andinconsistencies," the judge wrote in March. "The
witnesses conductedthemselves in a shameless fashion and displayed utter
contempt for the dueadministration of justice to the extent that they were
prepared to indulgein what can only be described as works of
fiction."

Mungwira also held open the possibility that, as the defense
claimed,government agents -- whom she called a "third force" -- had twisted
the caseto their own ends.

The following month, Moyo, Mpofu and
Sibanda -- who had been denied bail formore than two years -- were freed
from prison. The three other suspects hadbeen given bail
earlier.

Then, this week, prosecutors told the judge that they had no
case remainingagainst five of the suspects, including Moyo. The sixth,
Sibanda, stillfaces the possibility of prosecution when the case resumes on
July 26.

Attorneys for all the defendants, however, say they are
confident that theirclients will soon be exonerated. If that happens, no one
will have beenbrought to justice for the killing of either Nabanyama or
Nkala.

Coltart, now a member of parliament, said: "This is the history of
ZANU-PFin microcosm. They've used violence to achieve political objectives.
. . .They have killed their own and portrayed it as an attack on their own
byothers."

Moyo is broke and sick, suffering from a variety of
maladies includingdizziness, weakness and headaches that he blames on the
beatings he enduredin police custody. He fears more violence leading up to
the nationalelections in March.

"This next coming election will be
the killing election," Moyo said. "Peoplewill die."

A
former SAS officer and three other men alleged to have been behind a plotby
mercenaries to stage a coup in Equatorial Guinea are being sued in theHigh
Court in London by the government of the West African state.

British
lawyers acting for Equatorial Guinea and its president, TeodoroObiang, say
that they are seeking millions of pounds in compensation on therarely-cited
legal grounds of civil conspiracy.

Court documents seen by The Sunday
Telegraph name Simon Mann, an Old Etonianscion of the Watney brewing family
and a former Scots Guards officer, who isbeing held in jail with 70 other
alleged mercenaries in Zimbabwe.

They were allegedly en route to
overthrow the regime in Equatorial Guinea,but they insist that they had been
recruited as security officers at a Congodiamond mine.

Also named in
the documents are Eli Calil, a Chelsea-based oil tycoon; GregWales, a London
businessman; Severo Moto, the exiled opposition leader; andtwo of Mr Mann's
companies.

Lawyers for Mr Calil and Mr Wales, on whom the papers were
served last week,denied the accusations. Mr Calil's solicitor, Imran Khan,
said that he wouldbe offering "a vigorous defence". "There is no substance
to the claim," MrKhan said.

Sarah Webb, representing Mr Wales, also
said that the "proceedings will bedefended vigorously". Her client said:
"What is going on here is the attemptby President Obiang to hang on to
power."

Mr Moto, who is based in Madrid, told The Sunday Telegraph that
he hadspoken to Mr Mann about arranging "protection" for him on a planned
trip toEquatorial Guinea in March but said that he was not aware of any coup
plot.He said Mr Calil was a good friend.

Mr Mann is a neighbour and
friend of Mark Thatcher, son of BaronessThatcher, in the exclusive Cape Town
suburb of Constantia. He was involvedwith Executive Outcomes, the South
African mercenary company, and SandlineInternational, the outfit at the
centre of the arms-to-Africa scandal inSierra Leone.

The unusual
legal action in London comes as Mr Mann and his South Africanco-accused, who
were arrested at Harare airport in March, face key courtcases in
Johannesburg and the Zimbabwean capital this week.

Deep fault lines have
opened up between Mr Mann and his fellow defendants.

The other men, many
of whom are black soldiers who served in theapartheid-era South African
army, believe that their legal prospects wouldbe better there than in
Harare. The South African government, however, hasrefused to seek their
extradition from Zimbabwe.

Mr Mann has now dropped out of their joint
appeal against that decision, tobe heard tomorrow in the Johannesburg
constitutional court, and hasappointed a new legal team to seek his transfer
to Britain. At present, heis in solitary confinement in Chikurubi maximum
security prison.

The move has angered relatives of his fellow defendants.
"Simon Mann is thelinchpin of the whole operation," said Marge Pain, whose
60-year-oldhusband, Ken, was the flight engineer on the seized
plane.

"He got my husband and all the other guys into this mess and now
he seems tobe cutting and running. It's not right."

Criminal
proceedings begin in Harare on Wednesday, when Mr Mann will facefour charges
relating to immigration and aviation offences, and possessionof dangerous
weapons.

His legal representative said last week that Mr Mann "absolutely
denies" theallegation that he was leading a coup. "The idea that some 70 or
80 mencould mount a successful coup against any government is militarily
laughableand amounts to Boys' Own propaganda," he said.

Despite Mr
Mann's new legal ploy, Zimbabwe is widely expected to extraditethe men to
Equatorial Guinea in return for a deal to supply oil atdiscounted prices to
prop up the country's collapsing economy.

In London, the statement of
claim on behalf of President Obiang and hisgovernment has been lodged in the
Queen's Bench division of the High Courtand was served last week on Mr Calil
and Mr Wales. The solicitors areseeking court permission to serve the
documents on Mr Moto in Madrid and MrMann in jail in Harare.

Mr Calil
is also under investigation by a French judge over allegations ofillegal
payments involving the oil giant Elf-Aquitaine.

An ethnic Lebanese
entrepreneur with British citizenship who lives in amansion off the Kings
Road in London, he made his millions as an oil traderin Nigeria. His actor
son George appears in Holby City.

He has hired Lord Bell, once Margaret
Thatcher's public relations adviser,to put his case.

The documents
claim that the alleged conspirators met in London, Madrid andSouth Africa to
plot a coup with Mr Mann and Nick du Toit, a South Africanbusinessman now in
jail in Equatorial Guinea.

Mr Wales, an old Africa hand whose business
interests have ranged from amine clearance operation in Somalia to
consultancy work with ExecutiveOutcomes, said that he had met Mr du Toit to
discuss legitimate businessdeals in Equatorial Guinea.

He denied that
he was involved in any coup attempt, but said that there werefrequent
rumours of such plots. "Equatorial Guinea is the sort of placewhere if you
don't hear that a coup attempt is being planned, then there'ssomething
wrong," he said.

The South African government has been determined to
clamp down on mercenaryoperations being run from its soil. The Sunday
Telegraph has been told thatits intelligence services had been tapping Mr
Mann's phone and monitoringhis activities in the run-up to March's
events.

Equatorial Guinea is a small, malaria-infested country on the
Gulf of Guineawhich has been ruled by Mr Obiang since he overthrew his uncle
in 1979. Itis enjoying an oil boom following the discovery of large deposits
in themid-1990s - daily barrel production is slated to rise from the
current450,000 to 750,000 - but the proceeds have mainly been pocketed by
the smallruling elite.

America aims to obtain at least five per cent
of the oil it needs fromEquatorial Guinea over the next few years as it
seeks to lessen its relianceon Middle East supplies.

The US state
department, however, has been extremely critical of thecountry's human
rights record. Last week, Senate investigators issued ahighly critical
report linking the Obiang family to secret accounts valuedat about £500
million at Riggs Bank in America.

THE tussle to succeed President Mugabe has spilled into the
newsrooms of theState-controlled Zimpapers and the Zanu PF mouth-piece, The
Voice, sourceshave revealed.

They said a senior official in the
Department of Information and Publicityin the President's Office has ordered
journalists at The Herald and TheChronicle and the Sunday publications - The
Sunday News and The SundayMail - to stop publishing stories that portray
some veteran Zanu PFpoliticians in positive light.

Those being
targeted include Zanu PF vice president Joseph Msika, chairmanJohn Nkomo,
Emmerson Mnangagwa, the party's secretary for administration andNathan
Shamuyarira, its secretary for information and publicity. Nkomo andMnangagwa
are tipped as the most likely to fight out the battle to succeedPresident
Robert Mugabe when he eventually retires.

According to sources, the camp
which has issued instructions to sideline theveteran politicians has in its
ranks the likes of younger Zanu PFpoliticians Jonathan Moyo, Patrick
Chinamasa and Joseph Made.

The so called Young Turks' association with
Information Minister JonathanMoyo has resulted in them getting favourable
publicity in Zimpapers'newspapers which are controlled by
Moyo.

Nkomo, Mnangagwa and other senior Zanu PF heavy-weights have
resorted tousing the little read Voice to get some good publicity because
Zimpapers hasbecome a no go area for them. The Voice is run by Shamuyarira,
Moyo's bossin the ruling party.

In Bulawayo, senior journalists at
The Chronicle said they were under strictorders to write little or no
reports on political gurus in the region exceptAndrew Langa, the deputy
minister of transport who is not regarded as athreat by the Young Turks,
sources said. "We have been instructed thatexcept when it is absolutely
unavoidable, photographs of politicalheavyweights in Matabeleland like
Dumiso Dabengwa or Bulawayo Governor CainMathema should not be used on the
front page of the newspaper," said onesenior journalist. "We have been told
that they belong to the inside pagesand can only appear on the front pages
when being portrayed in a negativelight," the senior journalist at the
newspaper claimed.

He said only Mugabe, Moyo, Made and Chinamasa as well
as Reserve BankGovernor, Gideon Gono, were guaranteed good
coverage.

Mnangagwa has generally been ignored by the State controlled
media whileNkomo, Msika, and Shamuyarira have recently been lampooned by
newspapersfrom the Zimpapers stable. Nkomo now depends on his weekly column
in TheVoice to announce party programmes. Mugabe himself has not been
leftuntouched by the media war.

A day after addressing the Zanu PF
Youth Conference last week, Mugabe'sphotograph - as is the tradition - did
not grace the front page of TheSunday Mail or The Herald on
Monday.

HWANGE - IN a move that is designed to usurp the powers of MDC
mayorscontrolling many of the key towns and cities, the government intends
toestablish provincial councils presided over by governors and chiefs to
runHarare and Bulawayo, The Standard has established.

The new set up
will start in Zimbabwe's second largest city - Bulawayo - andwould spread to
other main cities countrywide.

While Harare has been "neutralised"
following the dismissal of ExecutiveMayor Elias Mudzuri, a powerful
MDC-dominated council led by Japhet NdabeniNcube is running
Bulawayo.

Bulawayo's Governor Cain Mathema - appointed by President
Robert Mugabeearly this year - is currently tussling with Ndabeni-Ncube for
the controlof the city, a bastion of opposition politics.

Revelations
of the government's intention to establish provincial councilscame out
during a three-day workshop on local governance held in Hwange
lastweek.

Bulawayo acting provincial administrator, Linsie Manjengwa,
said Mathemawould lead the "new Bulawayo metropolitan council". Executive
MayorNdabeni-Ncube and traditional leaders from the five districts would be
partof the council.

"According to the proposals made we are going to
have a provincial councilset up comprising the Bulawayo mayor, PA,
traditional chiefs and districtadministrators with the Governor being the
provincial council chairman,"said Manjengwa.

Several councillors,
NGOs and civic groups have described the newdevelopment as amounting to
"ruralising" the major towns and cities.

This follows hot on the heels of
the creation of urban metropolitangovernors' posts for Harare and Bulawayo
believed to have been made toreduce the MDC's influence in urban areas,
where it draws most of itssupport.

In Bulawayo, the government has
already gone further and incorporated fiverural district
councils.

Bulawayo councillors - who asked how the new provincial
councils wouldwork - expressed grave concern over government's "emotional"
and "crude"reaction to political opposition.

Bulawayo Town Clerk
Moffat Ndlovu told participants that the newmetropolitan province directive
had created lots of problems on the city'sdevelopment plans.

"The
government does not understand the implications of this arrangement,instead,
it is creating lots of problems. We are definitely experiencingpolitical
challenges and these political challenges must be addressedimmediately,"
said Ndlovu.

He said the Urban Councils' Act did not provide for the
creation ofgovernors and provincial councils.

"Without amending these
laws, the Governor has no role in Bulawayo except toco-ordinate State
functions such as the Heroes Day, Independence Day andDefence Forces Day,"
said Ndlovu.

The Bulawayo Affirmative Action Group regional president,
Sam Ncube, saidthe creation of provincial councils would cause lots of
problems, not onlyto Bulawayo, but also to the entire nation.

Said
Ncube: "I tell you, Bulawayo as we know it has gone . it is dead."

HEADS of private secondary schools that were closed by the
Ministry ofEducation, Sports and Culture in May following increments in fees
and levieswithout the ministry's approval have, for the first time, voiced
graveconcern over what they described as the "education crisis bedeviling
thecountry".

A Committee of Heads of Independent Schools of Zimbabwe
(CHISZ) which met inMarondera last week said the current crisis has serious
effects on thestandards of education in the country.

Education is
one of the many sectors reeling from the effects of the currenteconomic
meltdown.

"Amid the very real crisis that currently affects all our
schools, we cannotremain silent about the daunting prospects the future will
bring unlessthere is some relief.

"We are seriously concerned about
the deleterious effects upon the countryas a whole which failure to resolve
the crisis will engender, as well as theresultant reduction in the quality
and variety of education Zimbabwe will beable to produce," said the
committee in a statement.

The statement was signed by 13 representatives
from different schools.

The Minister of Education, Sport and Culture,
Aeneas Chigwedere, in Mayillegally closed 45 non-government schools that
hiked fees by more than 10percent without the approval of the Secretary of
Education.

Riot police were deployed at the school premises to stop them
from reopeningfor the second term. The move affected more than 30 000
children. Theschools were forced to revert to the old fee structure despite
the fact thatmany said it was not economically viable.

"Collectively
and individually, we have had to deal with bureaucraticconfusion, police
harassment and arrest, the illegal closure of schools,intimidation,
distortions, half-truths and misinterpretations, andintransigence in our
efforts to remedy the situation through normalchannels," said the school
heads.

The statement concluded: "We offer our sympathy to our colleagues
in theGovernment and church school Sector who have been suspended for
similarreasons as those that have affected us.

"We thank the great
majority of our pupils' parents who have supported us sofar, and we call
upon all reasonable people, in and out of the educationsector, to use their
influence wherever and whenever possible to bring thisneedless crisis to a
conclusion."

Among the school heads that wrote the statement include
Arundel, Chisipite,Christian Brothers College, Hillcrest, Gateway,
Masiyephambili, MidlandsChristian College, Petra, Lomagundi College,
Peterhouse, Peterhouse Girls,St Georges College and St John's
College.

FORMER chairman of the Electoral Supervisory Commission (ESC),
Bishop PeterHatendi, has criticised the electoral reforms announced recently
by thegovernment saying they have a 'negligent effect' on next year's
electionsunless accompanied by far-reaching constitutional
amendments.

Bishop Hatendi, who served as ESC chairman from 1985 to 2000,
said effectingthe electoral reforms without making various changes to the
constitution waslike 'putting the cart before the horse'.

'To
introduce a new electoral law before a new constitution, as suggested,is
putting the cart before the horse. Elections being the pillar of ademocratic
government must meet democratically elected principles,' saidBishop Hatendi
speaking at a Zimbabwe Election Support Network(Zesn)-organised workshop in
Masvingo last week.

The Anglican Church Bishop, who resigned from the ESC
in 2000 because 'thecommission was powerless and not independent from
government', described theESC – headed by lawyer Sobuza Gula-Ndebele – 'as a
toothless bulldog'.

If the reforms are to work perfectly, said Hatendi,
several laws such as thePresidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act, Public
Order and Security Act(POSA) and Access to Information and Protection of
Privacy Act (AIPPA) wouldhave to be revisited for them to be in tandem with
the reforms.

The Constitution was the absolute law of the country so the
new electoralreforms should not 'contradict' the supreme law or vice versa,
said Hatendi.

'We might have the reforms today but Mugabe, using the
Presidential PowersAct, might change the goal posts a few days before the
elections. There hasto be a holistic approach … not piecemeal,' said the
Bishop, who suggestedthe scrapping of most of President Robert Mugabe's
'excessive powers'.

For example, in September 2000, Capital Radio (Pvt)
Limited took thegovernment to the Supreme Court to challenge Section 27 of
the BroadcastingAct (1957) which provided for a State monopoly over all
broadcasting in thecountry.

Although the Supreme Court found the Act
to be unconstitutional, thegovernment promulgated the Broadcasting
Regulations, with a six-month lifespan, through the Presidential Powers Act.
The regulations were described asdraconian.

AIPPA restricts access to
official information by the media and the publicand also impacts negatively
on electoral issues such as voter education, arole that would be assumed by
the IEC.

However, Zesn chairman Reginald Matchaba-Hove said he did not
quite agreewith 'putting the cart before the horse' theory as alluded to by
BishopHatendi.

'It is better to accept the little positive changes
that we have achievedbut still strive to achieve more,' said Matchaba-Hove,
whose organisationhas been advocating for electoral
reforms.

Matchaba-Hove however said the electoral reforms alone, though
welcome, werenot the means to free and fair elections.

He said
democracy, human rights and the rule of law were of fundamentalimportance to
holding a free and fair poll.

'New electoral laws and processes will not
necessarily bring about free andfair elections. It is imperative that we be
guided by values and principlesthat are shared by the majority of civilised
humanity,' said Matchaba-Hove.

The government recently succumbed to
pressure from civic society andopposition parties and admitted to an
independent, publicly funded ZimbabweElectoral Commission (ZEC) that would
be accountable to Parliament.

However, the chief electoral officer will
still be appointed by Mugabecasting doubt on the independence of the body.
'The will and urgency toeffect holistic electoral changes are not there.
Where is the voice ofconscience … conscience of the nation State,' said
Hatendi.

According to the new electoral reforms, the President will
appoint fivemembers of the commission and its chairman, in consultation with
theJudicial Services Commission (JSC) and four other members from a list
ofseven names submitted by Parliament.

But Zesn in a booklet titled
Electoral Reforms suggested that IEC should becomposed of nine members, two
of whom are nominees from non-governmentalorganisations (NGOs).

It
said two members should be lawyers, four House of Assembly nominees whilethe
chairman would be nominated by JSC in consultation with the Law Societyof
Zimbabwe. A suitable candidate would then be approved by two-thirds
ofParliament.

Electoral laws in Zimbabwe are not in tandem with the
Southern AfricanDevelopment Community (SADC) norms and standards on
elections.

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe's distressed administration is not yet
off the hookfrom the International Monetary Fund (IMF) whose executive board
has delayedHarare's expulsion from the 184-member fund to
December.

In a statement released soon after the fund's recent meeting,
the IMF saidZimbabwe's Gross Domestic Production (GDP) has fallen by 30%
over the lastfive years and another 4-5% decline is expected this
year.

Year-on-year inflation -undoubtedly the highest in the world -
reached 600% at the end of 2003.

Unemployment, currently estimated at
80%, is increasing while socialindicators -which were once among the best
in Africa -have worsened, andthe widespread HIV/Aids pandemic remains
largely unchecked.

Despite weird claims of a bumper harvest this year by
President RobertMugabe and his Ministers, severe food shortages would
necessitate massivefood imports and donor assistance in the crisis-racked
southern Africannation.

'Directors attributed these developments
mainly to inappropriatemacro-economic policies and structural changes that
weakened its economicbase,' said the IMF.

The Bretton Woods
institution once again took a swipe at the violent anddisorderly
implementation of the land reform programme, which it blamed forthe sharp
reduction in agricultural production.

Concerns about governance and human
rights issues and the continued lack ofclarity about property rights have
severely damaged confidence, discouragedinvestment and promoted capital
flight and emigration, said the fund at theend of the meeting meant to
consider a complaint by the fund's ManagingDirector regarding calls for
Zimbabwe's compulsory withdrawal from the IMF.

The grievance stemmed from
Harare's overdue debt obligations andnon-cooperation with the
fund.

Contrary to claims by central bank Governor Gideon Gono reported in
theState media that Harare was off the hook, the multilateral lender
wasadamant that the country must improve its co-operation with the fund
andadopt a comprehensive policy package aimed at halting the
furtherdeterioration of the socio-economic situation before relations could
benormalised.

Harare was also ordered to increase payments to the
fund. As at the end ofJune, Zimbabwe, which has been in continuous arrears
to the IMF sinceFebruary 2001, owes the IMF US$309 million.

The
resumption of some payments from Zimbabwe -a meagre US$9 million paidso far
since January -and limited improvements in economic policy persuadedthe IMF
to postpone the compulsory withdrawal of the southern
Africancountry.

However the IMF directors said the resumption of
payments is insufficient tostabilise the country's arrears to the
fund.

'Executive directors expressed grave concern over the continued and
sharpdecline in economic and social conditions,' read part of the IMF
statement.

Although the board's decision does not impose further
sanctions on Zimbabwe,it tests Harare's capability to sort out its economic
mess and its abilityto settle overdue financial obligations.

Experts
have however ruled out Zimbabwe's chances of reconciling with theIMF in the
short term.

'It is shocking that the government of Zimbabwe is being
given a verbalassault by the IMF and yet they are celebrating … the
suspension of Zimbabweis still there and there are no balance of payments
support yet. The IMFstatement is a public admonition of the Zimbabwe
government,' said TendaiBiti, the opposition MDC's secretary for economic
affairs.

THE number of children orphaned by HIV/Aids in Zimbabwe is set to
increaseby 53,5 percent from 761 000, as of last year, to 1,4 million in
2010, asmany HIV-positive parents become ill and die of Aids, according
toprojections in the 2004 Children on the Brink' report.

Children on
the Brink is a joint report published each year by UNICEF, theUnited States
Agency for International Development (USaid) and the JointUnited Nations
Programme on HIV/Aids (UNAids).

The report estimates that the orphan
population in sub-Saharan Africa willincrease from 12 million last year to
18 million in the next decade,presenting a percentage increase of about
49,6.

There were an estimated 1 820 000 Zimbabweans living with HIV last
year and135 000 Aids deaths among adults in same year while in sub-Saharan
Africathey were about 23 million adults infected by HIV in the same
year.

This year's report, says Southern Africa is the most affected
region in theworld where an estimated 12,3 million children have been
orphaned by Aids.

The report notes that the number of children orphaned
by Aids will continueto rise for 'at least another decade' as adults living
with HIV succumb toAids-related illnesses.

'Sub Saharan Africa is
home to 24 of the 25 countries with the world'shighest levels of HIV
prevalence and this is reflected in the rapid rise inthe number of orphaned
children,' reads the report.

'Millions of children have been orphaned or
made vulnerable by HIV and Aids.The most affected region is sub Saharan
Africa where an estimated 12,3million have been orphaned by Aids. This
orphan population will increase inthe next decade as HIV positive parents
become ill and die from Aids.'

The 2004 report observes that 'orphaning''
due to HIV/Aids is not the onlyway that children are affected by HIV and
Aids.

'Other children made vulnerable by HIV/Aids include those who have
an illparent, are in poor households that have taken orphans, are
discriminatedagainst because of a family member's HIV status, or have HIV
themselves,'notes the Children on the Brink report.

'HIV/Aids has
joined a host of other factors including extreme poverty,conflict and
exploitation to impose additional burdens on society'syoungest, most
vulnerable members.'

As mitigation, the report proposes that causes of
vulnerability of childrenorphaned by Aids be addressed and that there be
reintegration of the childinto society through emotional and psychological
support

'To children and households in communities affected by HIV/Aids
addressingonly Aids-related problems and ignoring other causes of
children'svulnerability does not make sense.

'Programmes should
target geographic areas seriously affected by HIV/Aidsand then support the
residents of these communities in organising toidentify and assist the most
vulnerable children and households ...'

The report also says that because
children have lost their primarycaregivers, they are more than ever, in need
of care and stability

THE health delivery capacity of public health institutions
has beenadversely affected by the poor economic environment and some clinics
andhospitals are now operating without essential drugs and medical
supplies.

Zimbabwe's public health sector -once the best in sub-Saharan
Africa -isnow reeling as a result of neglect and inadequate funding by the
government.

Years of economic turbulence and rampant inflation,
averaging almost 600percent a year, have left the health sector on its
knees.

Contributing to the deteriorating health standards has been the
acuteshortage of foreign currency from the late 1990s and the withdrawal
ofsupport by international donors to protest allegations of
maladministrationby the government.

Over the years, Zimbabwe has witnessed a
massive brain drain and the healthprofession has been one of the worst
affected sectors. Recent investigationsby The Standard revealed that major
hospitals in the capital city -Harareand Parirenyatwa -are operating below
capacity because of inadequate staffand the shortages of basic drugs and
medicines.

At Harare Hospital, patients with serious wounds that require
dressing andcleaning at least once a week, were last week being turned away
because thehospital had no bandages.

'I have been told to go back
home because there are no bandages. They havesaid I should keep this one
clean because it will be a while before they getsome more supplies. I am
afraid the wound might develop infection if it isnot cleaned and changed
regularly,' said a helpless Paul Sadomba from WarrenPark who was injured at
work when a layer of bricks fell on his leg.

Mpilo Central Hospital in
Bulawayo, also a referral hospital, recentlysuspended major operations such
as those in the caesarian section becausethere are no anaesthetic drugs and
intravenous fluids. In cases ofemergencies, patients are asked to provide
their own intravenous drips.

The fact that major hospitals are suffering
is a major reflection of thegeneral decay in the state of affairs at other
smaller health institutionsin remote areas in the country. City council-run
public clinics have alsonot been spared the rot.

Besides the
prolonged strike by nurses and doctors, which is now into itsthird week,
Harare City Council has failed to keep a constant supply of evenbasic drugs
such as paracetamol and those for tuberculosis and malaria.

At Kuwadzana
clinic in Harare there were no TB drugs and general painkillerswhen a
Standard news team visited a week ago. Patients were being
givenprescriptions to buy the drugs at private pharmacies.

In normal
cases TB treatment is administered for free because it is part ofthe
government's policy to control and eradicate the disease.

'TB patients
are supposed to collect their drugs every week and are notsupposed to
abscond treatment for whatever reason. This erratic supply of TBdrugs is a
danger to patients,' said a nurse who spoke on condition
ofanonymity.

Mufakose clinic, also in Harare's high density suburbs,
has been closed formore than two weeks now, as the strike by nurses
continue.

'The bottom line is that
there is need for proper management of resources,experienced staff, adequate
remuneration of health personnel to avoidfurther brain drain,' said Dr Billy
Rigava, chairman of the Zimbabwe MedicalDoctors' Association
(ZIMA).

'I would feel that government has not given the health sector the
importanceit deserves,' said Rugava.

' If they had given the health
sector the same priority that they have givento the land reform and giving
land to landless Zimbabweans, then they wouldnot be any problem in the
health sector to talk about,' he said.

THE Movement for Democratic Change has set up a commission to
investigateproblems in Chitungwiza in what insiders fear could be a way of
building acase against controversial St Mary's MP, Job Sikhala, ahead of the
2005general elections.

The commission -which is headed by MDC
legislator Esaph Mdlongwa -is toestablish why there has been violence in
Chitungwiza between youths inZengeza and St Mary's. Sikhala has at times
been at the centre of some ofthe clashes and, at one point, his house was
stoned.

Party sources say it is only after the commission has
presented its findingsthat Sikhala will be vetted by the party's structures
to determine if he canstill represent the constituency in the March 2005
general elections.

The MDC has carried out a confirmation exercise in all
the constituenciesthat have sitting Members of Parliament except in St
Mary's.

Those MPs who have been confirmed by party structures in
theirconstituencies will automatically be the MDC's candidates in the
2005elections.

So far five MPs have since failed to garner the two
thirds majority supportfrom the structures that is required. These are Trudy
Stevenson (HarareNorth), Bennie Tumbare-Mutasa (Seke), Bethel Makwembere
(Mkoba) and DunmoreMakuvaza (Mbare East).

'Those who have failed to
make it in the first phase still have a chance torepresent the party when
they contest in the primaries that are going to beheld soon. It is an urgent
matter for the party, we need to confirm all thecandidates in time so that
they have time to campaign,' said Remus Makuwaza,the party's elections
director.

MDC sources say some party activists were wondering why a
commission hadbeen appointed before the vetting exercise was done in St
Mary's.

'It looks like they (authorities) want to raise as much murk as
possiblethat will discredit Sikhala. This would certainly be used to
influence partystructures when they vet him. It is not surprising the party
superiorsregard Sikhala as troublesome,' said a party official who declined
to benamed.

Welshman Ncube, the MDC's secretary general, said the
commission toinvestigate the violence in Chitungwiza was set up by Gibson
Sibanda, theparty's vice president.

'The commission is not
investigating (Job) Sikhala or anyone in particularbut as a party we need to
know the causes of the violence in the area and ifthere is anyone behind it,
that should also be established,' said Ncube.

Ncube said the commission's
report would be used in the selection process inSt Mary's.

'It is
prudent for us to get the information in the constituency beforecarrying out
the confirmation exercise there. The commission is going tomake
recommendations to the party and efforts would be made to try andreunite all
those who have been fighting,' he said.

The commission is expected to be
through with its report within a week andmake recommendations to the party's
executive.

Sikhala, however, told The Standard he was not aware of any
commission atwork in his constituency or Chitungwiza in general.

'I
don't know of any commission … but what I know is that the party iscarrying
out a confirmation exercise in all the 52 constituencies,'
saidSikhala.

'If the commission that you are talking about is about
solving the problemsin Chitungwiza then it is good for the party and my
constituency. Some ofthese problems should be resolved once and for all,'
said the MP.

AN atmosphere of fear and trepidation has gripped some State
controlledmedia organisations around the country amid reports that graduates
of thenotorious Border Gezi National training camps have been attached to
somenewsrooms ahead of the crucial March Parliamentary elections, The
Standardhas established.

Their mandate, according to some journalists
in the State media, will be tomonitor the political inclinations of staff
working for government run newsorganisations, following suspicions in ruling
party circles that a majorityof employees at government controlled news
organisations may infact beopposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
supporters.

Plans are also afoot, insiders say, to infiltrate
independent newspapers,regarded as anti-establishment by the Zimbabwe
government to monitor theiractivities.

The graduates are also
expected to act as political commissars of the rulingparty at the
work-places and whip media practitioners into line, TheStandard was
told.

Informed sources at government run media organisations said the
graduates,who are studying journalism at Harare Polytechnic also underwent
theNational Strategic Studies (NSS), a new subject recently introduced
atcolleges by the Zanu PF government.

Insiders say the subject is in
favour of Zanu PF and its leadership and alsoglorifies their role in the
armed liberation struggle.

Some senior journalists working for government
media organisations havevowed to resist attempts to saddle them with the
Green Bombers.

'If authorities want to flood the newsrooms with those
hoodlums then theycan go ahead as we will simply resign,' said senior
reporter.

Another journalist in Harare yesterday said panic had also set
in after'suspicious looking' students reported for attachment
recently.

'Journalists in most newsrooms are nervous about the presence
of a few shadycharacters who flooded our newsrooms recently. Some of them
just come to sitand they hardly know how to write a story.

In the
past, editors would discuss with us on the number of students to beabsorbed
for attachment but this time, we had an avalanche of people who aresaid to
be on attachment but because we don't have enough computers anddesks, they
just loiter around and get into everybody's way,' said adisgruntled
journalist with the State media.

BULAWAYO -The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has thrown
the Matabeleland Zambeziwater project a lifeline by injecting $12 billion
into the scheme, a movethat has seen contractors returning to the
construction site, The Standardhas established.

Chinese contractor,
Chinese Electrical Machinery and Equipment (CEME), hasreturned to the site
after abandoning work late last year followinggovernment's failure to pay
what it owed the company.

The Chinese company was demanding to be
paid a total of $25 billion for workit would do this year with half of the
amount paid upfront.

However, it is not clear to whom the $12 billion was
loaned since theMatabeleland Zambezi Water Trust (MZWT) is not permitted to
carry outtransactions on the money market since it is not a registered
company.

RBZ governor, Gideon Gono, confirmed this week that the central
bank hadreleased the money and that the Chinese company was already at the
site. 'Wehave been monitoring the progress of the MZWT and were concerned
with theprogress. As a result we have availed $12 billion towards the
commencementof the water project and the Chinese company is already doing
work on theground,' Gono said.

He, however, said the RBZ was not
taking over the project but was justensuring that it takes off the ground.
'The RBZ has not taken over but justprovided funds to kick-start the
project. The administration and the day today running of the project is
still under the Matabeleland Zambezi WaterTrust,'Gono said.

It was
not clear whether the money was released to Hope Mount Services, acompany
formed by the MZWT to source funds for the project. Gono refused toshed
light on the matter citing client confidentiality.

'Any banker would not
reveal confidential information about the client butall these details will
be announced soon,'Gono said.

Hope Mount Services has failed to raise the
US $50 million that it hadpromised to secure to kick-start the
project.

The long awaited water project has been on the drawing board for
over 100years but previous governments had always deferred it due to the
huge costsinvolved.

Government this year availed only $300 million
towards the pipe-line projectwhich, when completed, will pump water from the
Zambezi River to the aridMatabeleland region. The Standard understands the
money has already beenexhausted before work on the project
started.

The water project has been mired in controversy with the
opposition Movementfor Democratic Change alleging that the government was
using it as anelection gimmick to win elusive Matabeleland votes while the
government saysit is committed to ending the region's perennial water
problems byimplementing the ambitious scheme.

Meanwhile, business
executives in Bulawayo complained to Gono about theescalating crime rate in
the city's central business district with somechallenging him to look into
the security issue. They alleged that crime inthe city was having an adverse
effect on tourism and investments as thievesand robbers were having a free
rein in the city.

††††† His
arrival comes hardly two weeks after local and international Pressreports
said British police and immigration officers were investigating himin
connection with his businesses in Essex and how he had acquired documentsto
stay in the United Kingdom.

††††† The British Daily Telegraph
newspaper reported that Mau Mau's name hadcropped up during investigations
of an organisation called ZimbabweCommunity in the United
Kingdom.

††††† Contacted by The Standard yesterday Mau Mau said he was in
the countryto prepare two boxers in his stable for title fights in July and
August inSouth Africa.

††††† "Misheck Kondwane will fight Antony
Chesa for the Pan African Boxingtitle on July 30 while Farai Master will
fight for the World BoxingFederation's Inter-Continental title on August 6,"
said the veteran boxingpromoter.

††††† He deftly parried questions
about his stint in the UK andcircumstances leading to his being placed under
investigation.

††††† "I returned back home on Tuesday. Nyaya yeku UK
inotoda takagara pasitakatarisana. Otherwise if we talk on the phone, we
might end up misquotingeach other and then topedzisira takunetsana." (The UK
issue requires that wediscuss face to face to avoid any
misunderstanding).

††††† Mau Mau said the story concerning his alleged
investigation should notbe taken seriously because its co-author, David
Blair, was a discreditedjournalist who was deported from
Zimbabwe.

††††† Mau Mau reportedly sought sanctuary in the UK in 2002
after bereceived a drubbing at the hands of the MDC's Tendai Biti in the
2000parliamentary elections.

THE 15th
International Aids Conference which ended on Friday in Bangkok,Thailand
provided yet another opportunity to the world take stock and pointthe way
forward on an epidemic which has ravaged this continent in generaland
sub-Saharan Africa in particular for decades.

Last month, Zimbabwe held
its own first ever conference on this epidemic inas many years, whose theme
was apt and appropriately titled Taking Stock:Looking to the Future.
Clearly, there is no shortage of passion anddedication of those in the field
including our own Ministry and Health andChild Welfare to tackle this
disease.

But despite these concerted efforts to fight HIV/Aids, we do
not seem to bestemming the tide. The incidences of new infections are not
decreasing.Young women in the 15 -24 age range are extremely vulnerable not
to mentionthe married women category who are at great risk because of the
small housesyndrome.

Human nature is human nature everywhere. But in
Africa, things aredifferent. Men in this part of the world tend to run
several women at once.In the west, it is generally one woman at a time.
Therein lies thedifference in the manner in which HIV and Aids is spread.
Little wondertherefore that in western countries the rate of new infections
has droppeddramatically.

Consider these facts: Of the more than 38
million people infected with theHIV virus worldwide, about 25 million of
them are in sub-Saharan Africa. TheUnited Nations Development Programme
reports that life expectancy forcitizens of eight countries in sub-Saharan
Africa namely Angola, CentralAfrican Republic, Lesotho, Mozambique, Sierra
Leone, Swaziland, Zambia andZimbabwe has fallen since 1990 to 40 years or
less due largely to theHIV/Aids pandemic. The fall is as much as 20 years in
some countries -veryfrightening indeed! And it is now very clear that an
Aids vaccine is still along to way off.

In Zimbabwe, the epidemic is
on the march. Yes, there is indeed a strongfocus on Aids: by the Ministry of
Health and Child Welfare,bynon-governmental organisations, by businesses,
citizens and non-citizensalike. Yes, there is growing cooperation and
collaboration, working togetherto address the HIV/Aids
problem.

Although the war on HIV/Aids is being fought on many fronts -
prevention,treatment and care -there is no doubt that this disease has
become theleading killer in this country and elsewhere in Sub-Saharan
Africa. Theincredible orphan crisis in this country and elsewhere has to be
seen to bebelieved. Women and children are at the heart of this HIV/Aids
crisis. Weare, indeed, dealing with a humanitarian crisis of enormous
proportions.

Unlike all the countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Zimbabwe is
losing out asfar as the international partnership against HIV and Aids in
Africa isconcerned. The people of Zimbabwe are being punished because of
themisgovernance and wayward behaviour of their political
leadership.

We are not benefitting from the UN-sponsored global fund that
wasestablished to fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Neither are we
includedin the 15 target nations of President

Bush's Emergency Plan
for Aids Relief. Countries such as Mozambique withlittle or no
infrastructure such as laboratories to utilise the fund do knowwhat to do
with the avalanche of funds coming their way.

This is the tragedy of
Zimbabwe. South Africa, Botswana, Zambia andMozambique are benefitting
immensely because of their good governance andgood human rights records.
these countries are accessing the anti-retroviraldrugs and more testing is
taking place because of the funds that are beingmade available by the
international community, while Zimbabwe is beingshunned and
ostracized.

Former President Nelson Mandela's fervent appeal at the 15th
InternationalAids Conference in Bangkok last Thursday for governments and
businesses todonate generously to the war on HIV/Aids must have done wonders
for hiscountry South Africa -a country with the highest percentage of
peopleaffected with HIV and Aids. This is what happens when you have
politicalleaders in and out of office who are highly respected and admired
by theinternational community.

We need cheap generic Aids drugs and
accelerated testing to halt theprogression of HIV and Aids in Zimbabwe. But
we cannot hope to make adifference if we are cut off from the global
resource base that othersub-Saharan countries are tapping into because of
the misdemeanors fourpolitical leaders.

It is in this context that we
call on the international community to make aclear distinction between the
political leadership of a country and thepopulation of a country. People
cannot be made to suffer for the sins oftheir leadership. By all means,
punish the leaders but spare the citizens.

We are talking about a global
emergency. And for the most part, leaders arenot affected. It is the people
who are devastated by the social and otherconsequences of HIV and Aids.

THE quality
of broadcasting in Zimbabwe has taken a serious nose-dive. It isnow an
ordeal to listen to any of the local radio stations which play thesame
boring music by amarteurish local bands day in and day out. The
radiostations are just like my old CDs; I can't expect anything new from
them.

The person who decreed the 100 % local content is obviously
enjoyingwatching DSTv because if he was subject to the local content ruling,
hewould see sense and drop this ridiculous rule. And if we are so
seriousabout local content, why do we not extend it to everything
else.

Why not, for instance, have 100 % locally assembled cars so
that everyone,including President Mugabe and the ministers, drive the Mazda
323 etc. Thiswould certainly amount to leading by example.

I am so
sick of the whole charade that I now switch my radio on in theevenings to
listen to Metro FM and Studio 7 on the AM band.

I AM sure
you all know basically what has been circulating in the news mediain regard
to Kariba Municipal Council affairs in general, and thecouncillors and me in
particular.

I shall not go into much detail of the allegations that have
been made,suffice to say that my councillors and I have done nothing to be
ashamed of;nothing dishonest and nothing secretive.

Following the
last article in the national news media, a team ofinvestigators has been
dispatched to Kariba and, recently, representativesfrom the ratepayers'
associations, the councillors, my heads of departmentsand I have been
interviewed. A report will be compiled and presented to theGovernor,
Mashonaland West.

While it is not clear why the responsibility for this
urban council hasdrifted away from the provisions of the Urban Councils Act
and now fallsunder the Provincial Governor, Mashonaland West, we welcome
theinvestigation, as it will hopefully unveil the truth with regard to
councilactivities.

What the investigation will not reveal though, is
the real reason for theconstant attacks by a particular individual using the
national news papers,The Herald and The Sunday Mail, as a platform to launch
his campaign.

Much time and effort has been wasted, many meetings
disrupted andconsiderable delays to progress inflicted as a direct result of
theseattacks. I am no longer prepared to sit back and accept this
constantonslaught.

In the interest of progress, I owe it to the
people of Kariba to expose thenature of the beast and to urge the news media
to desist from publishingunsubstantiated libelous and defamatory
articles.

Samu Mawawo has been involved in Kariba for quite some time but
I have hadvery little, if anything, to do with him prior to my nomination as
mayoralcandidate for the MDC.

Mawawo, together with seven
accomplices, six of whom were said to be membersof the Zanu PF ‘Top Six'
from Chinhoyi, arrived at the premises of my formeremployers looking for me,
apparently to ‘persuade' me to withdraw mynomination.

There they met
my wife who confronted them and resisted their abuse. Ontheir departure my
wife discovered that her cellphone had gone missing. Shecalled the police,
who reacted very swiftly, made follow up efforts andarrested six members of
the gang.

It was revealed that the group had been attacking various
other MDCcouncillor candidates and supporters and had stoned and ‘petrol
bombed' somehouses. Incidentally, there was a shortage of petrol at the time
and the‘bombs' were filled with diesel instead and were not very
effective!

The accused were held in remand and attended court on various
occasionsbefore finally being granted bail in early September last year,
after theelections!

Mawawo and his associates had spent about five
weeks in custody, largelybecause of my wife's response to the intimidatory
attack on her -and thecase is still on-going. The charges include theft,
kidnapping, assault,assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, damage
to property andvarious other charges. My wife is a witness against
them.

The accused appear to have been abandoned by their former
associates andthey are without even legal representation at their trial
hearings. Theyappear to have no valid defence against most charges and face
incarcerationif convicted.

Mawawo claims to be the chairman of the
Kariba Incorporated Area Residentsand Ratepayers' Association
(KIARRA).

He broke away from the original Kariba Residents and Ratepayers
Associationwhich was dominated by the low density residents, and formed his
associationwhich, by all accounts, was functional at some time prior to my
term ofoffice. His association has been Zanu PF-oriented.

Early this
year a new Zanu PF dominated residents and ratepayers'association was formed
and is headed by a Isaac Mbongo, who advised me thatthe new association had
been formed and was not associated with KIARRA. Twoadditional MDC, initiated
residents and ratepayers associations have sincebeen formed and are in
association with each other.

We now have five residents and ratepayers'
associations, four of which donot wish to be associated with Mawawo or his
association, which leavesKIARRA on it's own.

At consultative meetings
with residents held in both high density areas, theZanu PF leadership in
Kariba disowned Mawawo saying, 'we did not send him.He does not report to
us. He is not our representative'.

The two MDC initiated associations do
not believe he has any followers, nordo the rest of the ratepayers. Mawawo
has lodgings here, which is where hiswife resides, but it is believed that
he is employed in Karoi and presumablyresides there. One wonders why he
should be so interested in the affairs ofKariba.

It is my opinion
that Mawawo has embarked on a personal vendetta against mebecause of the
part my wife and I play in his very uncertain future.

WHEN Zimbabwe gained its independence from Britain it had as its
head ofgovernment, the former guerilla leader, Robert Mugabe, an
avowedMarxist-Leninist. From the word go, he set about creating a
Leninist,totalitarian, one-party State under his party, the Zimbabwe African
NationalUnion (ZANU).

The World Book Encyclopedia describes
totalitarianism as "a form ofgovernment in which the State controls all
phases of people's lives".

Totalitarianism allows only one party,
headed by an absolute leader. Hemaintains his power over the party and the
rest of the people by force andviolence. Freedom of religion does not exist.
The State permits only thosechurches and ministries that co-operate with
it.

The labour unions are outlawed. The ruling party dictates the
country'seconomic policy. The government strictly controls all means
ofcommunication. It usually abolishes private schools and forces
publicschools to teach the party line, or ideas and policies approved by
theparty.

Communist Russia established the first totalitarian State
in 1917. Othermodern totalitarian States included Nazi Germany, from 1933 to
1945 andfascist Italy, from 1925 to 1943.

In order to establish a
totalitarian regime in Zimbabwe, President Mugabe isfaithfully following in
the footsteps of Vladimir Lenin. This is despite thecommon saying that those
who do not learn from history are doomed to repeatits
mistakes.

Russia abandoned as unworkable the political philosophy of the
atheist Leninwho, at one time said, "There are no morals in politics, only
expediency."

Marxist-Leninism led the Soviet Union to untold human
suffering and economicruin. Faced with economic collapse, Russia abandoned
Marxism, dismantled thetotalitarian machinery and is now building a free
democratic State based onfree-enterprise.

In order to achieve this
one party-State, Robert Mugabe violently bludgeonedthe only credible
opposition party, the Zimbabwe African Peoples' Union(ZAPU) into submission.
Its leader, Joshua Nkomo was hounded into exile. Thenotorious Fifth Brigade
was unleashed upon the minority Ndebele, most ofwhom supported ZAPU.
Thousands died.

To avoid further decimation of the Ndebele population,
Joshua Nkomocapitulated and signed the now much celebrated "Unity Accord" to
form ZanuPF. This was touted as unity between ZANU and ZAPU with the PF
standing forpatriotic front when, in actual fact, ZAPU was effectively
swallowed by ZANUto establish a one party State.

After independence,
Britain, the former colonial power, started to fund aland redistribution
programme, as it had promised. This was stopped in 1990because the aid was
not benefiting the poor, as intended, but governmentofficials and Mugabe's
relatives and friends.

Through corruption and poor governance, the once
robust economy of Zimbabwestarted to totter. When they saw that their
war-time comrades were enrichingthemselves, veterans of the liberation war
vociferously and threateninglydemanded a piece of the
cake.

Frightened by this turn of events the government dished out to them
billionsof dollars which were not budgeted for. The country also embarked on
acostly military adventure in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to prop
upthe regime of an unelected dictator, Laurent Kabila, who had promised
untoldriches to those who would rescue him from rebel armies. He was
laterassassinated by one of his own guards.

Soon the country was
broke and had to print money which was not backed byreal wealth. Inflation
started to soar and the common people could no longerafford to buy basic
commodities.

The people of Zimbabwe desired change. They, therefore,
joined the newlyformed opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in
their thousands.Facing this challenge, the ruling party crafted a new
constitution whichwould guarantee its continued stay in power and presented
it to the people.In a referendum, the people, led by the fledgling MDC,
overwhelminglyrejected it.

Zanu PF could brooke no such opposition to
its hegemony. The new party wasmet with unprecedented persecution. In order
to rally the people against itPresident Mugabe said it should be crushed
because it, was a puppet of theBritish who were bent on recolonising
Zimbabwe.

In Zimbabwe land has always been a bone of contention between
whites andblacks.

Through colonisation, the minority whites had
allocated to themselves about60% of Zimbabwe fertile land and forcibly moved
the majority blacks to poorsoils. This imbalance, Zanu PF had ignored for
years. But, because whitefarmers had backed the new political party, led by
Morgan Tsvangirai, ayoung trade unionist, the land issue came to the fore.
Whites had to go.

White farms were violently seized from about 4 000
white commercial farmers.These were allocated to Zanu PF heavy weights,
troublesome war veterans andsome peasants. White farmers who resisted, even
those who had bought theirfarms after independence, were imprisoned,
tortured, raped or killed.

The government propaganda machine went into
top gear. The people's champion,Zanu PF, was now taking land from the white
oppressors and giving it to itsrightful owners, the landless
blacks.

This worked very well for Zanu PF for the 2002 Presidential
elections werein the offing. Zanu PF won the election but neutral observers
and theopposition allege that they were rigged.

In view of the
expense of media propaganda and waste of manpower required toobtain a
forgone conclusion in elections, one wonders why the
totalitariandictatorship bothers with elections at all. My conclusion is
that they holdelections in order to create the illusion of complete support
by the people.

In all totalitarian dictatorships much effort is expended
to appear as thepopular and lawful leadership. The results of this procedure
(charade) arenot only for home consumption. They provide propaganda abroad
to helpmaintain the myth of democracy when, infact, Zimbabwe is a
totalitarianState.

With general elections slated for March 2005,
President Mugabe and his ZanuPF party are pulling all stops to make sure
that they win the elections byhook or crook. Faced with the real possibility
of losing power to the MDC inthe year 2000 elections, Zanu PF wooed mostly
rural voters with theso-called land reform programme.

Now that the
land card is played out the indefatigable Zanu PF has foundanother one. It
is going to use food as part of its campaign strategy innext year's
elections.

Zimbabweans and the international donor community were
astounded when thegovernment and President Mugabe proudly announced that the
country was goingto reap a bumper harvest. He therefore, told a United
Nations cropassessment mission to stop their work and leave the country. He
said the UNshould take their aid elsewhere.

"We are not hungry," said
the President. "Why foist this food upon us."

Starving Zimbabweans
listened in disbelief. The President was either grosslymisinformed or he was
deliberately lying. The later is true for this is awell planned election
tactic to use food as an incentive for people to votefor Zanu PF in the
coming elections. This will also move the prying eyes ofthe donor community
and the United Nations from observing Zanu PF'sunderhand
shenanigans.

According to donor agencies the country is not going to meet
its foodrequirements. The reputable German development agency, Friedrick
EbertFoundation, in a report commissioned two months ago titled Famine
inZimbabwe, predicted that Zimbabwe would have food shortages of between
600000 to 900 000 tonnes.

Gift Phiri, writing in the Zimbabwe
Independent on May 21 2002, saidaccording to a statement sent to that paper,
Victor Angelo, UN residentcoordinator in Zimbabwe said, "We are concerned
that should a foodassistance need be identified later in the year, and were
the government toissue an appeal at that time, a very rapid response may not
be possible."

THE RESERVE BANK of Zimbabwe has prescribed new conditions that
are aimed atinhibiting borrowers from easily accessing the cheap funds that
are beingditched out under the Productive Sector Facility
(PSF).

Under a new criterion for considering applications for rollover of
existingloans that was circulated to exporters at the end of June, the
central banksaid the rollover interest rate for loans approved from July 1
will now be50% per annum, up from 30%.

The performance variables
for non-exporters to be considered for rollover ofloans will be the
potential to create employment by at least 10%, and reduceprices by at least
25% respectively over the last quarter.

For exporters to qualify for this
extension, beneficiaries have to showevidence of confirmed export orders,
actual export performance and aremittance record.

The central bank
expects an increase of at least 20% in exports by thebeneficiaries over the
period they are being reviewed.

However, a 25% tax on export proceeds is
militating against the viability ofexporters to the extent that some have
suspended exporting citing thenon-profitable blend rate, say
experts.

'We are operating against an environment where we have lost our
markets andto try to regain them is another problem,' observed Luxon Zembe,
thepresident of the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC).

The
tightening of the lending conditions comes in the wake of reports
thatbeneficiaries of the funds were abusing the cheap money by investing
andcommitting the borrowed funds into non-core projects and
investments.

Of late, the benchmark industrial index has been bullish
scaling past the900 000 psychological mark last week, fuelling suggestions
that some of thecheap money was being invested in ZSE stock.

The
concessional financing scheme that is being disbursed to variousproductive
sectors and capped at a revolving fund of $1,5 trillion wasintroduced by the
central bank in 2003.

The main beneficiaries of this facility have been
the manufacturing sector -which chewed up to $683 billion -and agriculture
($522 billion), mining($115 billion) as well as transport, which has
accounted for $69 billion.

The new capping is meant to balance the need
to stimulate a supply responsewhile at the same time containing the
potential downside of demand-pushinflation arising from increased money
supply.

The central bank said future disbursements to productive sectors
would befinanced from repayments of maturing loans into the fund. The
refunds weredue at the end of June.

Other additional conditions are
that non-exporting borrowers shoulddemonstrate that they managed to maintain
at least constant staff levelsduring the period under review and that there
were no retrenchments.

They are also expected to show that any price
increases were not greaterthan 42%, which is consistent with inflation
levels during the periodJanuary to May 2004.

Borrowers who can
demonstrate scope for price reductions and increase inemployment levels will
be given priority.

However, Zembe says the 42% ceiling is an
understatement of the rise ininflation.

'Prices have gone up by more
than 42% given the increasing costs ofelectricity and rates. That is going
to be restrictive to borrowers in thissector who are also going to be
disadvantaged by the 42%,' observed Zembe,who said access to the cheap funds
needed to be broadened to all economicsectors rather than selected
ones.

For exporting borrowers to access funds, the central bank says they
shouldbe exporting at least 50% of output.

Witness Chinyama, an
economic analyst with Kingdom Financial Holdings, saysthe new conditions -
which he likened to a carrot and stick approach -areintended to generate
more foreign currency.